Thoughts: Tarte for True Blood (palette)

I will admit.  I did read Twilight when I was living in Florida (I mean, I literally had nothing better to do with my time) and despite it's angsty teenage terribleness...it threw me back into the VampHype that was going on at the time -- and is still going on...

Which leads me to True Blood.  I started watching the show before I'd ever read any of the books and I adored it!  I literally craved the next episode when the first one was over.  True Blood was also something Florida offered me that Maine wouldn't have (we don't get HBO in our cable package here - but when I lived down there my roommate was a TV-holic and so we had super premium cable).  Then I read the books...and goodbye tv show (I think I made it through all of season one and part of season two and I haven't watched it since).  The books far outshine the show.  But that's not what this review is about is it?

Head past the jump for thoughts, photos, and my ever helpful rambles about the TARTE FOR TRUE BLOOD palette!


I can never say enough for the value of a Tarte palette.  Really guys, the brand has done such a fantastic job at taking something everyone loves (multiple shadows in one convenient package) and smashing it together with something ELSE everyone loves (saving money).

If you do some research on the brand's site, you'll notice a few things.  One is that they are vegan friendly, cruelty free, and a natural brand.  The other is that while they mostly focus on palettes when it comes to shadows, they do sell some single shadows - and they ring in at around $17 a piece.  Just file that away in your head for a moment :)

I give you - the Tarte For True Blood palette.  A makeup arsenal full of goodies to transform even the minimalist makeup wearing waitress into a sultry vamp for the evening.  Ok, I know, lame.  Moving on.

The palette comes housed in a box that is fashioned up as a corset (awesome!) and it has a pull out drawer just underneath (Open After Dark) that houses a deluxe sized Lifted Eye Primer with Firmitol (which helps firm eyelids when used over time), a deluxe sized Lights, Camera, Lashes in black, and a full size EmphasEyes Aqua Gel Eyeliner in black. (mine are not pictured because the mascara and liner are long gone and the primer is somewhere in a drawer...haha).

I won't hesitate to say that I'm not a huge fan of the drawer to begin with because I feel that it makes the package quite bulky...and whereas I'm storing multiple makeup palettes, the slimmer the better.  In my opinion of course.

But now I'm just rambling and everyone just wants to see the shadows anyways, right? (the pictures are clickable and get quite large and I keep them that way because I like larger photos on blogs personally...)  Color descriptions follow the photo and are based on my own personal experiences with them, not what the brand or any other review has previously noted.

The Light is a soft shimmering vanilla peach.  It looks quite peachy in the pan, but on the skin it comes of whiter.

Fairy is a close cousin to The Light.  It's a soft shimmery pink with a slight opalescent overtone.

Dusk is a matte pale fawn color.  To my eye it has a slightly grey undertone and for a matte shadow has excellent color payoff and blendability.

Dawn is a shimmering soft yellow gold.

Werewolf is a matte chocolatey brown that leans cooler toned

Waitress is a glitter infused frosted peachy champagne.  To me, it's got a slightly grittier consistency and in my experiences with it, if you pat the color onto a stickier base, the fallout is greatly minimized.

Nocturnal is a shade I was totally pumped for, and yet...I was unimpressed with application.  In the pan it looks like a deep navy with blue micro shimmer and on my skin it's a matte black with barely noticeable blue micro shimmer.

Charmer is a frosted copper shade with a more golden tone than most coppers I've used.

Telepath is a pretty mauve with silver glitter.  The texture and payoff is similar to that of Waitress.

The True Death is a straight up metallic silver.  This color is awesome in the fact that it looks foiled when you use it dry!

Immortal has the exact problem that Nocturnal has.  Only difference?  This one is black with silvery golden micro shimmer.

Moss is a shimmering forest green and I feel as though there is an underlying golden/chartreuse micro shimmer in there...it's one of the standout colors of the palette and very unexpected

Legend is a matte grey toned black.  Think Clinique's New Black Quickliner in eyeshadow form.

"V" like Moss is another standout color from the palette (what? i really like color ok? haha).  It's a shimmering burgundy (the micro shimmer in this one is fuchsia! soooo pretty!) and like every other shadow in the palette, has fantastic color payoff.


I think overall, Tarte has delivered once again with their palette.  Not only is there an impressive range of shades and textures as well as finishes, the palette far outshines all others in it's value.

The palette contains 17 [full size!] eyeshadows, 2 deluxe size products, and a full size eyeliner and retails for $52.  Recalling earlier that Tarte shadows on their own are $17, you can see why I tout the brand for their value.

Product:  Tarte for True Blood Palette

Availability: Limited Edition from Sephora.com and tartecosmetics.com

Price: $52.00 USD

*The product mentioned in this blogpost was received from my job.  This has no bearing on what I write about any brand/product, nor am I being compensated for anything I write on my blog.  Integrity is far more important to me than money and I will always give an honest opinion about everything I write about.*